If £450 bought me a new gaming PC then I’d probably have pause, but it doesn’t

I’d probably describe myself as a lapsed PC gamer, these days: my gaming PC is the very best 2010 could offer and it still rocks for the odd blast of Team Fortress 2 but when it comes to a convenient and accessible bit of gaming, my Xbox has filled a niche, and that means the 4K Xbox One X is genuinely exciting to me.

I completely understand our very own Matt Hanson’s assertion that the XboxOx is underwhelming compared to his PC rig, and I completely get why the PlayStation Pro owners are giving Xbox fans a semi-amused stare (FYI we can’t see it through your VR mask guys…), but I’m pretty stoked by what I’ve seen at Microsoft’s E3 2017 reveal.

The truth is that I’ve been an Xbox fan ever since the Xbox 360 made me defect from the PlayStation, and although my gaming PC was my go-to gaming experience, things like FIFA and Forza were beautifully constructed for consoles and their controllers.

An Xbox One over a PS4 was a harder choice but I don’t feel like I’ve regretted it, and now the prospect of an upgraded experience that allows me to bring my Xbox One experience onwards and upwards is pretty cool.

Price tag

There will, rightly, be a lot of people wondering if that hefty price tag is worth it for a slightly prettier experience but, in truth, it allows me to join the 4K gaming bandwagon without the eye-wateringly expense it would take to take my once-amazing PC out to pasture, or less delicately ripping its guts out and only keeping the case, a couple of drives and PSU.

My heart still yearns to be seeking out the bargain graphics cards, the 4K monitor and the RAM I’d need to rejoin the wonderful PC tribe, but the head knows that not only would I be facing my wife’s very much not-amused stare (FYI I couldn’t see it through my HTC Vive sweetie!), but I’d also probably fail to justify the expense and I’d still be settling down for Fifa 18 on my Xbox One.

Yes, that $499/£450 price point is going to make me cry a little when I fork it over to the lovely guys at Amazon, but it will allow me to show off the genius of my 4K television to in-laws who, to my eternal annoyance, still claim to not be able to see the difference between SD and HD.

So, I reckon I’ll be at the front of the queue for the Xbox One X – even if I have to wait until I can see if the Black Friday 2017 deals at least gives me a couple of games bundled in at that price point.

Let’s face it, unless £450 allowed me to update my PC, buy a 4K monitor and an Nvidia Shield to stream to my TV then it just wouldn’t serve the same purpose.